About our equipment
Besides the well-known FT 847 and FT 1000 MP we utilize an older Czech transceiver TXR 210 (Snezka). Although it's over 12 years old it's got an excelent RF performance, better then the new FT 847. Especially in the contests its better stop band, IP and AGC do a very good job.
David, OK1RK at the 144 MHz
operation stand. He looks sad, because there was no response to
his CQ-call at the moment and OK1KIM had more QSOs than we did.
On the left picture is still older TXR 210 used, on right FT 1000
MP and new homebrewed transvertor from 21 to 144 MHz.
For the 144 MHz operation we are using now FT 1000 MP and transvertor with max. 10 W output and home made 120 W solid state driver with the MOSFET MRF 141 and a PA with the Czech tube RE 041 XL. It gives about 1 HP (750W) RF PWR in peak into the 75 Ohm load. An additional 2 X-tal filter can be connected to the RX way on 144MHz. A single antenna made according to the KLM17LBX design has a length over 10.5m . A 75 ohm very robust aluminium coax-cable (originally designed for the cable TV) is used for the feeding.
On 432 MHz we usually run an FT 847 and a PA with the older Russian tube GI 14B (similar to the well-known GS31). It yields about the same RF power as the 144 MHz PA does. The feeding is 75 ohms as well. The 432MHz antenna is a home made 33 el. Yagi (almost 8 meters long) according to the K1FO design, but tuned for 75 Ohms. On receiver front end we utilize a preamp with the MGF 1502, 0.6 dB NF. Our sigs can usually be read very well in the western part of Europe. You can check out our signals on 70 cm band recorded by G4LIP ,QRB 806 km, during the 2nd Subregional Contest 2000 here.
A look at the 432 MHz operation stand - PA with the peak wattmeter, 75 Ohm feeding cable and part of the single K1FO 33 el. Yagi
Both 144 and 432 operation are checked by home brewed RF Wattmeters with peak detectors and professional directional couplers.
Our 1296 MHz rig use TXR 210 as
driver plus transverter by DB6NT, with only about 15 W RF. Behind
it is connected PA with GI7b,
which give us aprox . 150 to 180 W RF. This power is feed into 1,6
m solid dish. ERP is peaked up to 30 kW !
Only in the case, that we have
limited number of contest participants, we usualy use a wide
horizontal beam collinear antenna as shown below.
This small antenna with 6 full wave radiators has a very wide
radiation angle with the gain only about 14 dB.
12 years old, but still good
czech transceiver TXR 210 is used on 23 cm stand. Beside is 1,6 m
dish, which help us on 23 cm to the our best result in UHF
Contest 2001,
when we made 130 QSO and 32314 points. When we are not able use
dish, we have:
Small collinear antenna for 23 cm band below the 70 cm Yagi
This small antenna is time to time slightly limiting factor of our operation on 1296 MHz, but in case of very bad weather it is better, than nothing.
OK2KKW club station operates also an UHF beacon OK0EP, built by OK1VPZ and put in the operation in 1982.
OK1TEH, February 2002